What's your "WHY"??
Replies
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Vanity. Though vanity seems to have given way to pride. Now if only my deplorable eating habits would go the way of my sedentary lifestyle!
You keep on grinding it out! You will master those urges and "deplorable eating habits" in no time! Seize the day!!0 -
I have a few "whys". When I was in university, from '06-'10, I lost 85 pounds. I felt great, looked great, had so much energy and confidence. Then I moved in with my then-boyfriend, gained it all back, and started to really feel awful about myself again. Not only because of the way I looked, but simply the fact that I let myself get that way again. I worked soooo hard the first time around, and all of that hard work vanished so quickly. When I really started to get angry at myself, that's when I started getting motivated again. It sounds vain, but I hated when the "You look great" and "you're shrinking!" comments stoped. I knew that the sooner I started, the sooner I would feel better. I'm only 24, and I know that it gets harder as you age, so what better time than now?
That was the "why" that I used to get started, and now I'm just determined to hit my goal (which I never quite did the first time around). I've made it halfway in a year, hopefully the other half will come by the end of 2014!
Ha! Check it out: when I started dating my then girlfriend (now wife of 20 years), I was a skinny, lanky 160 pounds of metabolic fire! I couldn't gain wait to save my life, because I was so ACTIVE. Well after we moved in together, I slowed down, and the next thing I knew I'd gained 15 lbs. After we got married, I stayed sedentary and ballooned to 245 lbs!! Oh how bad I felt! And people teased me about my new found pot belly! Lol! Well, I finally got sick of it and here I am today! I'm down to 221 lbs. and I feel better and look better than I have in YEARS! Let's see this thing through, shall we?0 -
It's all about ME
1) To be healthy.
2) To be fit.
3) To look fking awesome naked.
It SHOULD be about you, cuz you are definitely worth the work and effort! Hey, inside secret: I wanna look eff-ing awesome naked too! I can't WAIT to be able to strut the streets and beaches with my shirt off all sexy and buff! Lol!0 -
Sex
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My Why? Is that at 28 years old I feel like i am wasting my life away hiding at home with no confidence/low self esteem. Hopefully i will lose the weight and be able to enjoy life and for vanity reasons - go into any shop and find clothes that fit.
There is no time like the present to turn it all around in your favor! I'd like to hear you move from "hopefully" to "I CAN" lose the weight and "I WILL" lose the weight! You CAN and you WILL! I'm looking forwArd to the new wardrobe announcement! Trust me...you GOT THIS!0 -
Sex
That's a POWERFUL "WHY"! Sex, and good sex at that, HAS TO be up there I the top 5 of why to get in good health and fitness! Lol! Let's get it done, so you can "get it done" :bigsmile:0 -
I want to work in the medical field, and I would personally never trust a physician who didn't care for his/her own health. "Cura te ipsum."
I want to spend my life helping other people who are chained down by physical addictions, whether that be drugs, alcohol, food... there are too many strong people who deserve to regain control of their lives and just need a little extra help breaking down the barriers. I need to do that for myself before I can do it for others.
My mom is obese and one of her knees is already osteoarthritic beyond repair...she's only 47. I weighed even more than her when I started, and I need to show her that she's not too far in the hole to get her health back on track. I love her, and want my future children to know her and love her too.
I just feel good when I'm healthy. I've never been at a healthy weight, and I'm still not there yet, but now I can run for miles, I can lift heavy, and my body is getting smaller and stronger every day. I love it.0 -
Bad bishes.........
Also I used to be really fat & I got tired of being picked on. It has evolved into so much more though. my mental health the last 2 years has been great.0 -
It does wonders in every aspect of life to be healthy.0
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I have several "whys", but the number one...the one I tell myself every day to keep myself focused is this:
I do not want to die because of my weight.0 -
Why....
Originally it was because I saw a picture of me on Facebook and was disgusted. I moved out from my marriage of 22 years and I was a fat, unhappy person.
People say weight loss is 80% what you eat. I believe it's half and half with finding an activity you love to do. My love ended up being running. I don't love every step or every run, but I can't function without it. Running is my meditation time. I turn on a runner academy podcast and go. After about 5 minutes, I find my pace and the movements become meditative. I have worked out so much emotional baggage on my runs. I no longer use food as an emotional bandaid, it's for nutrition. I can be hungry and not flip out and eat everything in sight. I've only noticed this huge change in my relationship with food the past couple of weeks.
I still weigh everything and log everything, I'm not saying to throw all of that out the window. I'm just saying that when your focus is something other than the food it becomes more natural and long lasting.
I used to be in awe of the people on here who lost below their goal, but now I get it.
My why now is that I'm fit and single and ready to mingle.0 -
Strictly vanity, just want to look absolutely stunning naked.
I second that!0 -
I've been a caregiver for over a dozen years. As a friend once told me, "If you go down, you both go down."
I need my health and my stamina for this.
I've also been a lifelong yo-yo. I've been down this road many times before, but this time I am driven to maintaining good habits in a way that is sustainable for me. That's the real challenge.
Finally, I never forget that my mother had suffered her first major heart attack at age 44 and died three weeks after turning 57. I'm 55. She is my cautionary tale.0 -
I want to be able to walk and keep walking everyday!
I want an active life!
I think we take the ability to freely move our limbs for granted. I remember my grandmother telling me, after she had her foot amputated from diabetic complications, that she never imagined how difficult life could possibly be not being able to move as she once did. It took a toll on her emotionally and mentally. Your "WHY" is a mot excellent one. Thank you!0 -
Why? Because I come from a family of several obese people with all of the associated health problems. And I don't want to suffer like they have. I want to be fit and healthy for my whole life and not wait until I am sick to fix the problem. Prevention is the best medicine so to speak. And I have a hip tattoo. And that sucker looks horrible when I am 40 pounds heavier lol!
Preventative maintenance. There's a lot to be said for that. I'm glad you became proactive BEFORE you started having health issues. So many of us wait until after things have progressed too far along. I'm guiltynofnthat one. But thankfully, I am able to still do something about it and make a positive outcome.0 -
My "why" has changed over time.
I started out wanting to be healthier and reduce my blood sugar levels, with the anticipation I would lose some weight. However, when my blood sugar levels improved, I had also lost 50bs. More than I had been able to lose in the past. So I set another goal; lose Xlbs by a specific date. When I reached that date, I set a new goal. Each date has been associated with an event - a doctors appointment, or something. Funny thing is, I have missed almost every single one of those goals. BUT, only by a small amount, .5 to 5lbs each time. Just enough to drive me to try harder for the next one.
Now, I have accomplished so much, and goal weight is within sight, that is my why!
I have learned through this process that a little bit of sustained effort can accomplish amazing things!!!!
You made a great point. I had to learn the value of the process. I'd started and stopped dieting and exercising because I was impatient, not seeing the results fast enough. Now I understand this to be a journey and an adoption of a lifestyle. I'm glad to see that you have constantly been achieving results! That's inspiring for me. "A little bit of effort can accomplish great things" - I like that. We just have to be willing to get the ball rolling!0 -
Why? To tell the bad genes to F-off. Because consistency in training improves all aspects of physical and mental health. Because I was not meant to be strong or genetically inclined... because I have to keep going to maintain what I've become and to continue to progress... because it has become my lifestyle... because I enjoy it.0
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...I heard there was such a thing as BMI and to my surprise discovered I was in the over-weight category...
That's funny, when I heard there was such a thing as BMI, I discovered I was about 6 inches shorter than I needed to be!0 -
In a few days I am turning 61 - and have about 20-25 pounds more on my 5"8 frame than I want to have for the next 30 years. :-) One of my grandmother's lived until she was 98 - I want to follow in her footsteps.
With a bad back, even a few pounds over my ideal weight is supposed to be bad according to my chiropractor, and I have nice clothes that I cannot use - too cheap to buy new ones!
Also, chasing grandchildren around is MUCH easier the less I weigh. And so is skipping down stairs which I still do. :-)
I also want to stay out of my doctor's office; my blood pressure is good, cholesterol is good and all other tests are fine. I am in good shape, other than those annoying extra pounds. And I don't like it!
Vanity is also alive and well in my life - that's another WHY.
To all on here, keep up the good work - I have slacked off for a few months, but am starting up here again. I have enjoyed looking at all the replies to the WHY's - you all inspire me!0 -
My why has changed many times. Most recently my reason has been to meet the physical requirements for the job I want to have.0
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Redemption. To forgive myself for getting as big as I did. The only way to do that is to try to learn from my mistakes and work hard for a better tomorrow and to make a better me. 60 pounds lost so far, but still a long road ahead to redemption.
((On an aside, if you are reading this, feel free to send me a friend add. Looking for more friends.))0 -
I'm not a 'driven' type of person. I find steadily and quietly working on changing small things over time more effective for me than lots of heat or drama. I wouldn't deal well with the histrionics on programmes like "The Biggest Loser"! I'm not *desperate* to lose weight, I just want to. I would like to feel less restricted with doing the things I enjoy doing, being fat is really restrictive. I want to get fit because it feels good to be fit. I'd like to be able to wear my store of clothes again.0
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Because I lost me and I want me back! I feel strongly committed and I'm on the road to success. :happy:
Saying that you want to find yourself again is a clear indication that you know WHO you are and WHAT you want! Kudos to you for clearing one of life's major hurdles! Look for me along the road to success. I'm somewhere traveling with you!0 -
I'm not a 'driven' type of person. I find steadily and quietly working on changing small things over time more effective for me than lots of heat or drama. I wouldn't deal well with the histrionics on programmes like "The Biggest Loser"! I'm not *desperate* to lose weight, I just want to. I would like to feel less restricted with doing the things I enjoy doing, being fat is really restrictive. I want to get fit because it feels good to be fit. I'd like to be able to wear my store of clothes again.
The race is not given to the fastest or the strongest, but to the one that endures until the end. I define driven as being motivated to succeed. There can be an intense, compulsive drive, or a quiet and simple drive. Either way we are all motivated in some way to work toward a positive outcome. The motivation to feel good and wear your clothes again is what helps drive your engine! Keep up the little tweaks and adjustments. Before you know it they'll have accumulated into large changes!0 -
I want to feel proud of myself. I don't want to shy from the camera, from people I haven't seen in a couple of years, from my husband in the bedroom when I'm undressing.
But actually I couldn't even get started on this stuff until I started feeling proud, and stopped shying away from all of the above. And that happened when I was 53 lb heavier.
Kinda funny how that worked out.
:-)
You are well on your way. Self esteem and self image are so very important. People who don't struggle with those sometimes just don't get it. God bless 'em!! But look at you, 53 pounds lost and counting. You SHOULD think highly of yourself; that's a major accomplishment! Keep up the good work!0 -
This is a complicated question for me but here are the main reasons:
1. When I look in the mirror, I want to feel great about what I see. I want to leave my house feeling like I can take on the world.
2. I want to be strong.
3. I want to feel accomplished and confident for meeting my goals.
4. I want to save money on eating out, buying new clothes if the old ones don't fit anymore, and in the long run, on medical expenses.
5. Heart disease and diabetes both run in my family and I do not want to continue the cycle if I can prevent it early on.
That's a great list. I like the notion that you want to break the cycle of heart disease and diabetes. Too many of us allow ourselves to become resigned to genetics and family history. But if we want, we can break the cycle. My family has a LOOONG history of both. For a long time, after I got the diabetes and hypertension diagnoses, I had a horrible mindset. I gave into negative thinking, believing that this would just be my fate. I'm glad my mindset changed. If it is to be, it is up to me.0 -
Because I don't want to die from being fat like my grandmother did and like my mother is well on her way to doing. I don't want to spend my 'golden years' with a quality of life that is terrible - unable to get around or hooked up to a oxygen tank or a walking pharmacy.
We only get one go around. I want to be around to enjoy it for as long as I can. I love my life far too much to shorten it with a cheeseburger.
I used to feel bad for looking at my unhealthy relatives and secretly wishing to never be like them. But now I am glad they provided the motivation for me to do better. My paternal grandparents both died from diabetic complications. My favorite cousin, a year younger than me died from heart problems stemming from diabetes. Two aunts and an uncle DIED from the same. Three friends I went to high school with are dead because of high blood pressure and diabetes. My mother's quality of life has been drastically affected by obesity, diabetes and heart problems. I have garnered all the motivation I need to take a different path and pursue greatness in health with all I can muster. Like you said, we only get ONE GO AROUND! Why WASTE precious time being sick? There too much to live for!0 -
My why is mainly so I will fit in my clothes. I also want to look better and be healthier. My husband doesn't mind my extra weight so he is not a motivator for me. I also have arthritis and want to weigh less for my joint's sake.0
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At the beginning of this journey my Why was that I was getting sick of feeling sick ... and fat and unfit and unhealthy.
Now, being well past the half-way mark, my Why is: "Because I CAN do it!!!"0 -
These are great "whys"!
Often the medications we are prescribed are worse than the disease and a much easier cure is hitting us right in the face.
Losing weight and gaining fitness allows our bodies to heal themselves which is what it was designed to do before we rerouted it with unhealthy living!
I relate to your post very much and my "why" is similar but when looking long term it is to be able to live longer and enjoy my family times much more.
This is a great topic and is all about mindset - which is so important.
I'm a rim believer that the mindset is absolutely paramount in achieving or not achieving anything in life. Check out the blog : www.cayjominara.com. The way we see and view ourselves and our situation determines our course in life and the eventual outcomes. One of my WHY's is because I HATE diabetic medication. I take glucophage (Metformin) and it is totally counterproductive to weight loss. It also makes me feel horrible! So I am super committed to being able to come off the meds altogether. But to be able to do that, I'll need a premier mindset and perspective. Thanks for sharing! I hope we can help each other get there!0
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